New Girl
by Miscellaneous
Summary: A psychic accidentally finds Hogwarts..can she help in the fight against Voldemort? Can she be trusted? Read to find out! Chpt 8 up!
1. The Letter

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS, SAVE JULIA ANDREWS AND ARROW. NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO COPY THEM, UNLESS THEY WANT TO SUFFER A VERY SLOW AND PAINFUL DEATH. NYAH.  
  
Albus Dumbledore was just getting ready to head down to the Great Hall for breakfast when to his surprise, a falcon zoomed into his chamber and dropped a letter and perched itself in the window. The professor adjusted his glasses and realized that this letter wasn't from Sirius, who quite often used. . .'interesting' birds to deliver his mail so he wouldn't be tracked. The hand writing was not familiar at all. Giving the falcon some water, due to the fact that it looked exhausted, he sat down to read.  
  
To Professor Dumbledore, or whom it may concern,  
  
It was by sheer accident that I found Hogwarts. . .I was channeling and the image of the castle came through. I did a little homework and I found that it is a school for witchcraft and wizardry. I also learned that a dark wizard, known as 'Voldemort,' was bent on ruling the world for years, but was temporarily placed out of commission when he tried to kill the boy known as Harry Potter.  
  
I am no witch, but I do know that Voldemort is again on the rise. . .there have even been a few missing families here in America. There is no way that I can know what's going on and just let myself stand aside without trying to prevent it. For this reason am I sending you this letter. As before mentioned, I am not a witch, but I am not without my own abilities. I am not sure if wizards and witches have another name for it, but as muggles like to refer to it, I have the 'sixth sense,' the ability to use your mind to do more than merely think. It is for this reason that I am applying to Hogwarts. I know that you are possibly the greatest wizard of all time, and that you have a fair and honorable way of thinking, which is why I had enough courage to write to you and ask to apply. If I am refused, I will still do my best to help rid the world of Voldemort's returning wrath.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Julia Andrews  
  
After silently putting down the letter and wondering if this was some sort of joke, Dumbledore found that there was another piece of paper that the falcon had brought.  
  
Please don't mind Arrow. He has never seen a phoenix before.  
  
Sure enough, there was the falcon, looking at Fawkes as though it were an egg that he didn't know how to crack open. Dumbledore smiled at the falcon's confusion and sighed. He already knew what his answer was to this muggle's letter, but he wasn't sure about what the other teachers would think.  
  
-=-=-=-=- 


	2. The Conference

"Albus, what's wrong with you!?" Severus Snape snapped. "Letting a MUGGLE attend Hogwarts!? She can't be trusted. We'll wind up having to perform a world-wide memory charm in three days flat."  
  
"Severus is right, Albus. How can we trust a muggle? Especially one who claims to be psychic?" McGongall agreed with Snape.  
  
"Pair-haps zees leetle girl, zis Joolia, she can be trusted aftair all. 'Ee-Who-Must-Non-Be-Named eez vairy dangerous indeed. We need all zee help we can get, non?" came Fleur Delecour, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher's voice. A sizeable percentage of the other teachers murmured in agreement. Snape snarled. Yet again, he had failed to land the Defence Against the Dark Arts position.  
  
"I have been looking at my tea leaves. . ." the misty voice belonging only to Professor Trelawny filled the room. Everyone choked on the heavy perfume that came with the comment. "I have been sensing that an outsider would apply to Hogwarts. Be wary, my friends. She is not to be trusted. She will be accompanied by Death, and surely we shall all be doomed." No one bothered to pay attention.  
  
"I am sorry that some of you disagree with me," started Dumbledore, "but I have already sent a reply to Miss Andrews with her falcon. She will be starting in the fifth year, in September, like the rest of the students her age. She will be placed in Griffindor House, if that's alright with you, Minerva?" Knowing better than to argue, McGongall stiffly nodded. Dumbledore looked at the rest of the faculty members in the room. "Are there any questions?"  
  
Nobody dared to argue after that, but almost everyone could hear Snape muttering something along the lines of, "As if Potter and company aren't enough trouble for one house."  
  
"Unless, Severus, you would prefer having the Miss Andrews in your house, perhaps?"  
  
The Potions master snorted. "I would rather have the famous Harry Potter himself reside in my house," he spat.  
  
-=-=-=-=-  
  
Aright, folks! I'm reeeeally really sorry that the first two chapters are so boring and short!!! _ It'll get better, I swear! Here's a hint: I have practically the whole story planned out, I just haven't typed it up yet (because I am lazy). But if you want to speed up the process any, lots of reviews = more chapters! =) 


	3. Diagon Alley

August was coming to an end, and Julia was getting a tad worried. She knew the trip to Hogwarts would be long for Arrow; she had sent him in May, telling him to rest frequently because he had until the last day of August to get back to her. She had assumed that he would get there in June, and get back before August was over. She was also secretly hoping that Dumbledore would give Arrow a little something to speed him up, but she doubted that. What was more important was whether or not she would be accepted to Hogwarts. She sat on her bed and wondered where Arrow was. Then she remembered she was psychic. "That's real smart, Julia, forget the reason WHY you were applying to the school in the first place." As she quietly scolded herself, a high-pitched male voice entered her head:  
  
"I'm almost home."  
  
"Great, Arrow. . .was I accepted, d'ya know?"  
  
"Julia, I'm a friggin' peregrine falcon. Last time I checked, I couldn't read or understand human language."  
  
"Well, you have the attitude of a couple of humans I know. . .any clue as to when you'll be home?"  
  
"Before the sun sets, most likely."  
  
Julia sighed with relief. As she waited, she looked into her mirror, just to pass the time. She wanted to look presentable if she went to Hogwarts. She saw that she had fine, light brown hair, which went down just past her shoulders. She also saw her sapphire blue eyes, and her perfectly straight teeth ("They weren't always like that. . ."). Her ears remained un-pierced, and her nose seemed as normal as any, which she had no problem with. Finished memorizing her facial features, Julia's eyes wandered down to her neck and shoulders, slender, but not bony. Julia noticed that the rest of her body was as such: slender, but not at all bony. She took full advantage of the fact that she could pass for 21 if she wanted to. That was how she lived alone in her apartment, Arrow being her only company. To be quite honest, Julia's appearance radiated with elegance. When she had gone to muggle-school, as she soon found herself referring to her own kind, guys from freshman to senior had been all over her. She hadn't liked any of them though, because she knew they only liked her for her appearance, and not her personality. As she recalled the fact that she had nowhere to go if Dumbledore rejected her application, Arrow zoomed in to the room in a flurry of feathers. As he collapsed on the bed, Julia frantically tore the Hogwarts seal to read the reply. . .  
  
To Miss Julia Andrews,  
  
On behalf of the safety of others, we at Hogwarts, Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry would be more than happy to have you join us here in the fight against Voldemort (careful - most wizards and witches, save a small fraction, refuse to speak his name) here at Hogwarts. We are all honored to have you, and trust that you shan't tell a soul of the existence of witches and wizards, etc. I trust that you have access to a fire place, for that is how you shall get to Diagon Alley, where Rubeus Hagrid, your soon-to-be Care of Magical Creatures teacher, shall make sure you get your supplies and that you get safely on the Hogwarts Express, which will escort you to Hogwarts. When you arrive, Professor McGongall will escort you to your house, Griffindor.  
  
Seeing as there is no record of you having any guardians as of recent, you shall be put on scholarship so you may purchase your supplies. Enclosed is your key to your Gringott's vault, where you will find your wizard money, along with your course schedule, and the list of supplies you will need. In a smaller envelope in this letter, you will find floo powder. What you must do is have a fire going in your fireplace. Toss the powder into the flames, then loudly call out "Diagon Alley," and step in. I assure you, if your voice is clear, you should have no problems getting there. I wish you luck in your journey, and am looking forward to your arrival.  
  
Sincerely, Albus Dumbledore  
  
At this, Julia immediately sat down, for fear she would faint.  
  
"Well???"  
  
"I've been accepted!!!"  
  
"Congratulations, but careful: some of those people didn't sound too happy as they were talking."  
  
"I'll survive."  
  
And with that, Julia started packing immediately.  
  
-=-=-=-=-  
  
The next day, Julia carefully opened the other envelope. At this moment, she was very grateful for being on the ground floor, where the chimney was. Double checking that her key was around her neck, she tossed the floo powder into the fire, and bravely called, "Diagon Alley!" out into the flames. After the flames had changed color, Julia picked up her suitcase and made sure Arrow was firmly holding on to her arm as she stepped into the flames.  
  
As she tripped out of the fireplace of what looked like an ice cream shop, Julia looked up and gasped at the gigantic figure standing in front of her. "I'll be s'posing that yeh're Julia Andrews, am I right?" Julia nodded timidly. The giant man suddenly let out a booming laugh. "Well, yeh don' hafta be so scared abou' it," he smiled through his dark whiskers. "I guess I should introduce meh-self." He cleared his throat. "Rubeus Hagrid, Hogwarts gamekeeper and Care of Magical Creatures teacher. Eh, but yeh kin call me Hagrid," he added less formally.  
  
Julia let out a huge sigh and laughed. For a moment she thought she had wound up in a giant's lair. "Hagrid, I am most pleased to meet you," she giggled. "I suppose you're gonna be my temporary tour guide, right?"  
  
"Summat like that, I'd guess. Dumbledore told me all abou' yeh. But a piece o' advice fer ya: whatever yeh do, don' go aroun' tellin' folks yeh're a muggle. It won' go over well at all. So in all the shops an' such, we're s'posed ter say yeh're a transfer student from Durmstang until we get to Hogwarts. Then the teacher who's in charge o' yeh're house'll explain the whole situation to em, but they won' say an'thing abou' You- Know-Who, so don' you say an'thing abou' it either. It won' go over well with your classmates, especially those bloody Slytherins. Every last one o' em's got connections to the Dark Side." Hagrid shuddered. As he was saying all of this they had headed over to Olivander's Wands. "Er, Julia? Yeh wouldn' mind if I stayed outside, would yeh?"  
  
"Of course I wouldn't mind. . .why would you want to stay outside though?"  
  
Hagrid looked at his feet. "Teh be honest with yeh, Julia, Mr. Olivander looks at me a little more suspiciously than I'd like him to." Julia nodded as she went inside. She had learned that Hagrid had been expelled in his third year and his wand had been snapped in half. However, she got a 'feeling' that the pieces were concealed in his pink umbrella.  
  
As soon as she walked in, she felt that this was the type of place to keep your voice down in. After a short moment, Olivander appeared from behind what seemed to be one of hundreds of shelves filled with long, thin boxes. "And who may you be, my dear?"  
  
Julia immediately recalled her story for everyone. "My name is Julia Andrews, and I am a transfer student from Durmstang. I assumed this was -"  
  
"Where you may purchase a wand? But of course. Olivander's has many wands, but," he paused, "the wand chooses the wizard, and not the other way around." His ice-blue eyes bored holes into Julia's. She was quickly realizing why Hagrid had no intention of coming in. He pulled out a box. "Hmm. . .I believe this one shall work. . . .nine inches. . .birch. . .along with a hair from the tail of a unicorn. . .give it a wave. . ."  
  
Julia knew it wouldn't work, but she waved it about a bit to humor the old man. After about two more wands, Julia suddenly felt one box drawing her attention. "Excuse me, Mr. Olivander. . .perhaps this one." She carefully pulled the box off the shelf.  
  
Olivander looked at the box curiously. "I wonder. . .13 inches. . .maple. . .powered by the heartstring of a dragon. . .quite an interesting combination, if I do say so myself. Well, try it out. . ."  
  
As soon as Julia held the wand in her hand, she felt as though she were free-falling, wind blowing in her face. The thrill was amazing, such that she had never experienced before. "So this is what it's like to be a witch. . ."  
  
"Interesting. . .most wizards and witches received a negative reaction from that one, if anything. . ." Olivander eyed Julia suspiciously as she fumbled with her wizard's money to pay for her wand.  
  
"Hagrid, you were right about Olivander. . .he's disturbing."  
  
"What'd I tell yeh? Personally, I think 'e's an ole kook. Well, that's about everything yeh need. . .yeh already have Arrow (who was actually perched on Hagrid's shoulder looking very content with his high roost), so yeh really don' need an owl. . .'Arry's got a nice one, though," he muttered to himself.  
  
At the mention of a name, Julia remembered that Hagrid was a teacher at Hogwarts, and would certainly therefore know a good number of students. "Hagrid, are there any students in my class that I should, uh, 'know' about?"  
  
Hagrid suddenly seemed to wake up from his thoughts. "Eh? Well, lessee.yeh're gonna be a fifth year, righ'? Hrm..oh! 'Arry Potter's in yehr year. . .great kid. An' then there're Ron Weasley an' Hermione Granger. . .brilliant girl, she is. But lemme tell yeh. . .them Slytherin bastards're pretty bad. Eh, Draco Malfoy, he's a real ass. His flunkies ain't no better. . .stay away from 'em, Julia. They're bad news."  
  
Julia had heard lots about Harry Potter, but she had never seen him or knew what he was like (the information she got via channeling was very vague and most likely not too accurate). "Hagrid, being a muggle, I don't know much about Harry Potter. Why is he so popular?"  
  
Hagrid puffed out his chest with pride, being one of Harry's closest and first wizard friends. "'Arry's a great kid, Julia. . .'e survived a supposedly non-defensible and lethal attack from You-Know-Who, which caused the Dark Lord teh lose jus' abou' all 'is power, givin' 'Arry the nickname 'The Boy Who Lived.' 'E's a pretty regular good kid, though. 'E sure knows how teh defend 'imself, that's fer sure," he laughed. " 'E's not a kind o' person the let fame get ter 'is 'ead, if that's what yeh meant," he added. "Yeh'll definitely know 'im by the lightning shaped scar on 'is forehead, but that may be 'ard teh see 'cause 'o 'is black hair. . .uncontrollable, jus' like 'is father's was. . ." Julia let out a sigh of relief. She wanted to meet the wizard who survived a powerful Dark wizard's supposedly fatal attack. She had been worried that he may be a bit stuck-up. Hagrid didn't seem like the type to take crap from anyone, so she trusted that he was a nice guy. "Eh, Julia, I'm gonna head over teh the Leaky Cauldron fer a drink. . .that's where yeh'll be stayin' tonigh', but I'll be assuming yeh'll be wantin' to explore Diagon Alley. I'll meet yeh outside o' the Owlry at 7:00 to bring yeh to the Leaky Cauldron, where yeh'll be stayin' fer the night. After that, it's Hogwarts Express!"  
  
Julia grinned, "Aright, bye, Hagrid!" She didn't know where she wanted to go first, so she decided to go to the ice cream parlor where she arrived. She was a little nervous, wondering if wizard ice cream was any different than muggle ice cream. To her relief, wizard ice cream included all the muggle flavors, along with a few others. Julia didn't think she was ready to try exploding strawberry flavored ice cream, she would try that at a later point if she ever got a little more 'used' to being a pretend-witch. As she sat down at a table in the corner (she wasn't very good at meeting people, plus she didn't want to accidentally blow her cover as a muggle) to enjoy her chocolate ice cream, she saw two boys, both about her age, walk in. One was average height, with red hair and freckles scattered across his face. Julia deducted that by his slightly childish face that he hadn't quite hit puberty yet. The other boy was much taller, with messy black hair and glasses. Julia made mental note of how attractive he was. As she quietly ate her ice cream, Julia found herself stealing glances at the dark-haired boy a little more often than she would like. *Suddenly, when she was catching another glimpse at him, he stopped chatting with his friend and happened to meet her gaze. Turning 50 shades of red, Julia immediately cleared her mind and muttered "Unseen to foreign eyes, concealed in disguise," so quietly and quickly that no one could hear it, even if they had been sitting next to her. She was immediately invisible to all eyes but her own. She didn't need to chant anything to do this, but she felt better whenever she did. All the while she felt her eye candy looking at where she had been. She knew she had disappeared so quickly that it would seem as though the boy had imagined seeing her, but she still couldn't believe how close that was. Looking at her watch, she felt a wave of relief as she saw that it was 6:57. She immediately got up, and without another look at the attractive adolescent, she quickly left the parlor to meet Hagrid at the owlry.  
  
  
  
*At the other table:  
  
As Ron dove into his exploding strawberry ice cream, Harry made a slight face. "Ron, how can you eat it that fast? It explodes in your mouth right away, and the more ice cream, the bigger the explosion. Doesn't that hurt your mouth?"  
  
"Harry," POP "that's the whole point of it! You really should try it some time.it's so much better than that rocky road crap," he replied as he pointed at Harry's ice cream. Harry shrugged. All of a sudden he thought he saw someone out of the corner of his eye, but as soon as he turned to look it was gone. "Must be my imagination, he muttered."  
  
"Huh?" Ron looked up with a mouth full of ice cream.  
  
"I thought I saw someone in that corner by the window over there. . ."  
  
"Maybe it was someone walking by, Harry. It's only 6:50 or something. People are still awake at this hour." He commented.  
  
The two boys laughed as they promptly forgot about it and went back to talking about Quidditch.  
  
-=-=-=-=-  
  
  
  
YAY! A somewhat long-ish chapter! Remember! Reviews are fuel! =D 


	4. First Impressions

Julia's head was flooding with a swirl of nervousness and excitement. Though she had never REALLY believed in magic as a child, she had always been interested in how magicians fooled their audiences into thinking that it did exist. Hagrid had dropped her off at Platform 9 ¾, and she had sat down in a vacant car to avoid contact with any wizards or witches, particularly the ones that Hagrid had warned her to stay away from, for fear of being dragged into the maelstrom. Luckily, no one else sat down in her car, but a few girls had walked through her car, whispering about something and giggling. Julia didn't at all mind being alone. She wasn't a great conversationalist and she could talk to almost anyone she wanted. She decided to see if she could get a hold of her literary hero, William Shakespeare.  
  
"Shakespeare? Not again, Julia."  
  
"Can you blame me Arrow? He was a genius!"  
  
Arrow seemed to let out a sigh as he ruffled his feathers. Julia closed her eyes and cleared her mind. If a student came through it would look as though Julia were trying to fall asleep.  
  
"Hey, William, guess what?"  
  
"My fair lady, thou knoweth I despise guessing sport."  
  
"I'm going to a school to learn faerie magic!"  
  
"O' the fates! 'Tis not imaginable! Thou shalt not be skinned alive for't maiden?"  
  
"Not by these people, my good sir. These people can't live without this magic. I will be considered normal here."  
  
"Godspeed."  
  
Julia decided to bring herself back to reality, just in case anyone happened to be staring. Thankfully, no one was. She decided to change into her robes, seeing as the train appeared to be slowing down. As soon as she was finished, she looked out the window and was amazed at what she saw. The castle was the most magnificent thing she had ever seen, with all it's towers and landscape. The familiar voice of Hagrid brought her back to reality. "Firs' years, over 'ere! Follow me! How yeh doin', 'Arry?" Julia strained to see who Harry was and what he looked like, but it was foggy and she couldn't tell where he was, let alone where he was. "Julia, get in the boat with me; the rest o' you firs' years, get into the other boats, three to a boat, please, an' follow me."  
  
The ride to the castle was fairly short, but when all the first years were being herded towards the Great Hall, Hagrid lead Julia to a different corridor, where Albus Dumbledore himself was waiting. "Hello, Hagrid," he nodded. "Julia Andrews, I presume?" Julia smiled and nodded shyly. Dumbledore smiled broadly. "Welcome to Hogwarts! Professor McGongall is the head of your house; she will explain things a bit for you. Ah, here she comes now," he declared as a petite woman with black and grey hairs pulled back into a tight bun headed towards the two.  
  
"Well, Albus?"  
  
"Here is your new Griffindor, Professor," Dumbledore smiled. As McGongall made what almost looked like a smile (Julia immediately deducted that McGongall wasn't a teacher to joke around with), Dumbledore repeated, "She will tell you everything you need to know so you won't be confused. Now if you'll excuse me, everyone in the Great Hall is probably wondering where I am." And with that, Dumbledore left the two standing in a slight awkward silence.  
  
Professor McGongall broke the silence. "Well, I'll be supposing that you aren't very familiar with magic, are you?"  
  
Julia could tell that McGongall was trying to be nice, but had the nagging feeling that she wasn't trusted. "Not really. . .I guess I'll be needing extra help of some sort to catch up with my class," she respectfully suggested. She didn't want to get on any of the teachers' bad sides, for fear of being expelled of an 'accident' she might be blamed for.  
  
"Precisely," McGongall replied. "Starting tomorrow, you will be attending evening classes at 9:00 involving only you and the teacher. We don't want any students getting suspicious, that's why the classes will be at the later hour. Your professor will help you with the basics until you catch up to the rest of your class. The only students who will be aware of the fact that you're not a witch will be your fellow Griffindors and the faculty. You may therefore feel free to sit in on any Griffindor ONLY classes during your free time if it will help you catch up at all," she added.  
  
Julia didn't want to spend a school year knowing that the head her own house didn't trust her. "Pardon me for asking, Professor," she began, "but you don't seem to trust me, and I was curious as to why. . ." she immediately looked at her feet and blushed.  
  
McGongall's face suddenly seemed to soften. She didn't realize that her harsh no-nonsense shell was terrifying Julia. "I'm sorry, Julia.it's just that I'm worried about you telling other muggles about the existence of wizards and witches. . ."  
  
Julia immediately looked up and smiled. "Was that what you were worried about, Professor? Please, don't. There is no one back in America that I like. I'd have no one to tell. Plus, I'm able to keep a secret really well. Your strongest honesty spell would let you know that!" Julia felt a lot better when she saw McGongall actually smile.  
  
"Alright. I trust you. A few people may not though, I warn you." She paused for a moment. "It sounds like the students are heading up to their houses. I will escort you there, but wait outside so I can explain the situation to your fellow Griffindors."  
  
As Julia was lead through corridors and up staircases, she gazed in wonder at the moving stairways and the living portraits. She even thought she saw a few ghosts passing through the walls. "I dunno if I'll ever get used to this. . ." she whispered to herself.  
  
Finally, Professor McGongall stopped in front of a portrait of a fat lady in a pink dress. To Julia's surprise, the lady looked at the professor and asked, "Password?"  
  
Without a pause, Professor McGongall replied, "Chocolate frog." As the portrait swung aside to reveal a hole which led to the Griffindor common room, the professor turned to Julia and told her to remember the password; she wouldn't be allowed in the common room without it. "I'll be back in a minute or so."  
  
As Julia waited, she wondered who she would meet, if she would make any close friends, and if the famous Harry Potter was in the same house. "Shit. . .I KNEW I forgot to ask Hagrid something." The thought of only being able to talk to Arrow on a friendly not for a year was horrifying, especially since he could have a bit of an attitude every so often, and Julia tried to keep a positive attitude. "I'm going to make friends. These guys are ' kind-hearted.' I should fit in well. . .I hope."  
  
At that, the professor stepped out. "They're somewhat ready for you," McGongall said almost teasingly.  
  
"Worst comes to worse, I guess I can always talk to Professor McGongall. . ." Julia took a deep breath and stepped into the common room. What met her were about 30 or 40 pairs of eyes. Once again, Professor McGongall broke the silence. "May I introduce Miss Julia Andrews. She is a transfer student from a muggle school. She accidentally found out about Hogwarts when she was 'channeling' and asked to apply. Needless to say, she has been accepted. I trust that all of you will be kind and show her around for the next few days so that she may find her way around Hogwarts. I also trust that none of you will tell ANYONE that she is a muggle," she looked at a few students, "or I may be forced to take points away from my own house. Good night, all of you." She turned and looked at Julia. "Your things should already be in your room. Remember: 9:00 tomorrow night. You will get a note tomorrow morning telling you where and with whom." With that, she left.  
  
Luckily, Julia didn't need to break the silence. Two identical red-headed boys strode up to Julia to introduce themselves. "Pleased to meet ya, Julia," the first one said grabbing Julia's hand and firmly shaking it. "Fred Weasley! A real pleasure, a real pleasure!"  
  
"He's not Fred, I'm Fred!" started the other. "He's George."  
  
"No, I'm not, you bloody poser! I'm Fred!"  
  
Julia cracked up. The two were hilarious. As soon as she calmed down a bit, she thought for a moment, and then looked at one. "You're Fred." She looked at the other. "And you're George." She smiled in triumph as the two twins stared at her in disbelief.  
  
"How did. . ?" George couldn't finish his sentence.  
  
"No one has ever been able to tell the two of us apart," Fred gasped. "How in. . ?" Like his brother, Fred couldn't believe it.  
  
Julia grinned. "Lucky."  
  
"Weren't any of you listening?" came a voice. A girl with bushy brown hair pushed her way through. "She's a psychic. She can read minds."  
  
Julia was slightly offended. The way the girl had said 'psychic' bothered her. She said it as though she didn't believe in it. "Actually, I didn't do anything. One just seems more like a 'Fred' than the other," she said quietly.  
  
"Of course," the girl retorted. She didn't seem to mean it though. "isn't that what all psychics do anyway?"  
  
Julia didn't reply. How could one girl be so cruel? She had no problem with some people not believing in the sixth sense, but she couldn't believe that someone could be so harsh about it.  
  
"Hermione!" cried another girl. "Where are your manners? Sorry, Julia, SOME people don't believe in the extra intuition. My name's Pavarti Patil, by the way. And this is Lavender," she continued, motioning to the girl next to her. "We're gonna be in the same classes as you," she smiled. "Oh, by the way," she said rather uninterestedly, "that's Hermione Granger. You'll hafta excuse her," she added, throwing Hermione a Look. "She doesn't believe there's such thing as an Inner Eye." Julia didn't either, to be honest, but she figured that now was not the time to bring that up.  
  
Julia sighed with relief. "Nice to meet ya," she replied. She tried to smile at Hermione, she was one of Harry's friends, after all, but Hermione had buried her head in a book.  
  
A few more students introduced themselves, mostly guys, and Julia finally decided to go to where her bed was. She was surprised to see that her suitcase was already unpacked, and Arrow was perched in the window, his favorite spot in any place.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"I think I'm gonna do fine."  
  
-=-=-=-=- 


	5. The Meeting

The next day was a Monday, and Julia didn't know whether to be terrified or blissful. She was going to learn to be a witch. And she was going to help defend the planet from a Dark Lord. Things were happening so fast, she had to sit down in one of the squashy chairs in the Common Room before going down to the Great Hall for breakfast. As she sat down, she saw someone coming down the stairs from the boys' dormitories. When he came into view, Julia couldn't believe who it was. It was the hottie from the ice cream parlor. As soon as she started to blush, she remembered that he hadn't seen her and immediately calmed down. She was surprised when he greeted her.  
  
"Morning. . .waitasec. . .I don't recall seeing you before," he said as he put his glasses on. "No, you're definitely a new face." He reddened considerably as he saw how striking this stranger was.  
  
"Oh, I'm the muggle-transfer student. . ." At this she blushed a little, as she remembered Professor McGongall's lack of trust at first meeting her. "I came in a little late yesterday."  
  
The boy looked a tad confused. "A muggle-transfer? Is that even legal?"  
  
Julia had no idea. She didn't want to get the same reaction from this guy that she got from Hermione. But he seemed so friendly. . ."Well. . .I found Hogwarts by accident and wrote a letter to Dumbledore, asking if I could apply so I could join the fight against Voldemort, I mean -" She had caught herself too late. She looked at the boy, who looked shocked. "I'm sorry, it's just that -"  
  
"You are the only person that I've heard aside from Dumbledore and Sirius say his name. I'm impressed," he smiled, forgetting that the girl wasn't a witch at all. "My name's Harry. Harry Potter. Pleased to meet you."  
  
The lighting-shaped scar on his forehead proved it. Julia couldn't believe that she had a crush on the Boy Who Lived. "So much for that; he probably already has a girlfriend and 12 more girls falling all over him," she sadly thought to herself. "I think I may have seen you before. . .oh, yeah! I saw you at the ice cream parlor yesterday! I should've said hi or something. . ."  
  
Harry seemed genuinely interested in Julia. She was pretty, and she seemed like a nice person to boot. Plus she hadn't been kissing up to him due to his popularity. He hadn't recalled seeing her though. . ."Where were you at the ice cream parlor? I don't remember seeing you."  
  
"I was sitting in the opposite corner of the room. . .you're back was to me," she quickly fibbed. Well, it was sort of the truth. . .  
  
"Ah. I wouldn't know, so I'll take your word for it," he grinned.  
  
Julia smiled. "You're a lot nicer than I thought you were going to be."  
  
Harry didn't think that any muggle would be expecting to know anything about him. "You mean you've heard of me?"  
  
"Of course! You're the Boy Who Lived, aren't you?"  
  
Harry was still confused. How could a muggle know this? Unless. . . "Hey, are you a muggle from a wizarding family?"  
  
Julia's face immediately changed. "I wouldn't know - I haven't heard from my parents in years," she replied quietly. She had been told that her parents had been killed in a car accident when she was four. She was sent to live with relatives, but they were ashamed of the fact that she was psychic and turned her away as soon as she turned 10. She had been on her own ever since.  
  
Harry was immediately regretful of what he had asked. "I'm sorry. . .my parents died when I was young too. . ."  
  
Julia managed a quick smile. "It's not your fault. No, I don't think they were. They were killed in a car crash when I was too young to remember anything."  
  
"Then how did they allow you into Hogwarts?"  
  
"Well. . ." Julia didn't know how to put this at all. "You may not believe me, but Dumbledore seemed to, and that's all that matters." She took a deep breath. "I'm a psychic," she said rather quickly. She looked at Harry to see if he believed her.  
  
"Well," he started, unsure of what to say. "To be honest with you, I sort of believe you. You're not trying to be all mysterious or anything like the Divination teacher. She's a real dud. I mean, I'm not gonna drool all over you like I heard Lavender and Pavarti were. They're obsessed with that stuff."  
  
"I really wouldn't want you to," she replied. "I don't do public predictions." The two laughed. "I just privately drift off into my own little world sometimes." Julia trailed off, staring into space. Harry snapped his fingers in her face to bring her back to reality. "But it's okay! -They know me there!" she quickly replied as if nothing happened. Harry couldn't believe that this stunning girl he was talking to could be a psychic and be so normal. The only so-called psychic he knew acted like she was all-knowing. Julia could be as funny as Fred and George put together. "Holy shit, it's almost 8:00. We're not gonna have time for breakfast."  
  
Harry looked at his watch. Sure enough, it was 7:50, and it took a few minutes to get to the Great Hall. "I guess we didn't notice everyone else heading down, huh," he commented. "Ah, well, I can introduce you to Ron and Hermione."  
  
Julia bit her lip a little nervously. As she stood up, she noticed that she was considerably shorter than Harry. "I sorta met Hermione yesterday. . .I don't think she likes me very much."  
  
"How could she not like you?" Julia went on to tell Harry about last night. He immediately wished he hadn't fallen asleep in his bed as soon as he got to the school last night. "I wouldn't worry yourself too much about it," he reassured her, "Hermione isn't the first to make friends with new people. Ya just hafta warm up to her a little bit. You'll see." As Harry and Julia sat down with Ron and Hermione, a murmur went up through the Griffindor boys. "Julia, this is Ron, and this is Hermione," Harry said as he introduced her to his friends."  
  
Julia tried to start on a clean slate with Hermione and smiled. "Hey, Ron," she nodded, "Hermione."  
  
"Hey, pleased to meet ya," replied Ron as his ears turned bright red.  
  
Hermione wasn't about to answer, but then she saw the Look that Harry was giving her. She managed a stiff "'Morning," before going back to eating her eggs.  
  
Without warning, a feathered torpedo zoomed over the Griffindor table, dropped a piece of paper at Julia's place, zipped around the room, and landed on the edge of the table next to Julia. As it munched on her bacon, Ron's mouth hung open. "Wh-what is that thing?" he stammered as he pointed at Arrow, who was showily preening his feathers as if the show he had just graced everyone with was no big deal.  
  
"Oh, this is Arrow. He's my falcon. I'm a falconer in the US." As everyone in the roomed gawked at Arrow, who seemed to be loving the attention, Julia read the paper.  
  
Your extra help class tonight will be Transfiguration, with Professor McGongall, in her classroom.  
  
Julia sighed with relief. At least she knew what type of person McGongall was. Everyone else was a mystery. "What's that?" Ron inquired.  
  
"Oh. It's just a note from Dumbledore wishing me luck and what-not," Julia lied. She didn't want anyone thinking she was a learning freak or anything.  
  
History of Magic was fascinating for Julia. She had been a history ace in school, and the fact that it was taught by a ghost made it even more interesting, despite the fact that all he did was drone on and on about goblin rebellions and what-not. Julia decided to go sit in on a Transfiguration class so "she'd be somewhat prepared for the class." She had said that she had a feeling it'd be one of her worse subjects. As soon as she was out of earshot, Hermione started on Harry. "Harry, can you be any more OBVIOUS?"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Harry, you were staring at Julia the entire class. I know it's boring, but blimey, you were near drooling over - "  
  
"Don't YOU start, Ron. You were gaping at her, too." Ron started to say something, but before he could, Hermione went on. "It's all an illusion of some sort. She probably IS a witch who used a.a love potion of some sort. Even if she is a fortune teller, think of Professor (if she even is a professor) Trelawney. She's a fake, and so is she. Ugh. Men are so TYPICAL. All they care about is cleavage." And with that she left in a huff.  
  
"Y'know," Harry grinned, "she looks like a pissed off chicken when she gets mad." The two boys were doubled up with laughter for a few minutes after that.  
  
As they headed up to the Common Room, Ron couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. "How'd ya land such a hottie!?"  
  
"What?" Harry was thoroughly confused. "Uh. . .I said hi to her this morning before I put my glasses on, and then I realized that I didn't I didn't know her, and we started a conversation."  
  
"I'll be in the library if you need me." Ron sped off to the library.  
  
When Harry got to the Griffindor Common Room, Hermione noticed that Ron wasn't with him. "Where's Ron?"  
  
"Looking for blinding spells."  
  
-=-=-=-=- 


	6. Potions Mistress

Julia made sure to be early for Potions - she had heard horror stories about Severus Snape, the potions master. She had also memorized almost the entire Potions textbook. "Well, well, well. . .what do we have here, boys? A Griffindor that was separated from the rest of the flock. I wonder who it could be," came a snobbish voice from behind her.  
  
"If you're really curious, why don't you ask me then, Draco?" Julia replied without turning around. She knew that she had the upper hand as of now, but once Snape got there, it'd be all over if she took a step out of line.  
  
"Suppose I don't want to?" Draco's voice wasn't as confident this time. He didn't recognize the voice. For all he knew, it could be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. On the other hand, if it was a teacher, and he lost points, he could always get Snape to give him points quite easily. His nerve came back immediately.  
  
"Then I suppose, you'll have to ask around then, won't you, Mr. Malfoy?" She knew she had gotten him there. After a moment, Draco skipped over to finding out who this voice belonged to.  
  
"Why don't you turn around, so I can find out?"  
  
As Julia whirled around, her eyes turned to an even icier blue than they already were. "Smile when you say that," her face was inches away from Draco's, "or this Yankee may forget her manners."  
  
Draco could feel his very soul being pierced by this terrifying yet gorgeous girl's eyes. It threw him off tremendously. "Oh, r-really? And w-w-what might you do to me if I d-don't?" he stammered.  
  
"Wouldn't you like to know," she whispered maliciously. At that, the rest of the Griffindors arrived, closely followed by Snape. Julia turned on her heel walked into the dungeon classroom, leaving Draco speechless.  
  
Julia couldn't believe her luck. She had terrified Draco Malfoy and hadn't given him any reason to go crying to Snape. She hadn't performed any spells, she hadn't touched him, and she hadn't broken any other general rules. As Harry sat down next to her, he looked dumbfounded. Ron followed closely behind, yammering on about Draco. "Did you see Malfoy out there? The ass is just standing there with his mouth hanging open! Who could do that!?"  
  
"I did," Julia quietly answered. "I had the element of surprise on my side," she quickly added. Even Hermione looked impressed.  
  
"You didn't use any spells or anything, did you? That rich butt hole'll go running to Snape, and then you're really screwed," Ron warned.  
  
"Course, anyone who's a Griffindor's screwed when Snape's around," Harry quickly whispered as Malfoy walked in, followed by Snape shortly after.  
  
Snape looked exactly as Julia had imagined, complete with greasy black hair and hooked nose. "He kinda looks like Alan Rickman. . ."  
  
Her thoughts were interrupted as Snape approached her slowly. "It looks as though we have," he looked around the room and then back at Julia's sapphire eyes, "a new student," he finished, his oily voice slicing through the silence, similar to a hot knife through butter. "Tell me, Miss Andrews. What is the importance of a bezoar?"  
  
Julia thought for a moment. "A bezoar can save you from most poisons," she answered with some level of confidence."  
  
Snape raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected her to know the answer. "Very good, Miss Andrews," he said as his beady black eyes studied her with suspicion. "And where would I be able to find one?"  
  
"In the stomach of a goat, sir." Of course he, like Hermione, did not believe that she was a psychic, so he was convinced that the girl had actually studied the Potions text. He continued to quiz her for a while, covering most of the material from the past year or so AND some material that hadn't been covered quite yet, and eventually gave up. In reality, Julia actually did know most of the answers. For the two questions she didn't know, she did a quick search through Snape's mental repertoire to find the answer. Then he did something that caused the entire room to nearly keel over.  
  
"Five points, Miss Andrews, will be awarded to Griffindor for coming prepared to class."  
  
Hermione couldn't hold her tongue. "Professor Snape, I've been prepared for class every for the past 4 years and - "  
  
"I don't recall requesting your opinion, Miss Granger. And if you don't shut that smart-alecky mouth of yours I may feel more than inclined to take those five points back from Griffindor. As for your complaint, Miss Andrews has told me only what I have asked of her, and nothing more. You give me a vocal term paper." Snape looked at the clock on the wall. His one-student pop quiz had taken up almost the entire class. "Class dismissed."  
  
As the class filed out of the cold dungeon, emotions toward Julia were extreme. The Griffindors (save Hermione) were about ready to worship her as their goddess. Hermione and the Slytherins, on the other hand, were about ready to offer her up as human sacrifice for their god. Julia realized that it was hopeless to try to leave for lunch unnoticed, but she figured it was worth a try. Lavender and Pavarti got to her first.  
  
"Good, Lord, Julia, that was brilliant! You stumped The Snake and you got him to let us out of class early!" she gushed.  
  
"How did you do it?" Pavarti asked with enthusiasm equivalent to her friend's.  
  
Trying to diminish their admiration for her, Julia just shrugged and answered honestly. "I just read over the material before class," she grinned sheepishly. She just wanted to help save the world, that's all. She didn't want to be famous for it or anything. These two were fawning over her as though she were related to Justin Timberlake. She was getting a little tired of the two girls drooling over her shadow. Coming up with an idea to get them off her back, she suddenly started in a foggy voice, "Girls, my Inner Eye is telling me that there is an important matter I must attend to in the solitude of my room. . . I hope you girls won't mind excusing me -"  
  
"Oh, please forgive us, Julia!" Lavender squealed. "We didn't mean to interrupt your important schedule!" At that, the two girls sped off to lunch.  
  
Julia couldn't believe how gullible the two were. She had them both wrapped tightly around her little finger. She couldn't help but pity them for their foolishness. As she headed up to the common room, she consulted her schedule to see what class she had next and when she had it. "Ooh, fun," she muttered. "Divination."  
  
-=-=-=-=-  
  
At lunch, Harry and Ron knew better than to break Hermione's silence after what had just happened in Potions. The two also noted that despite the fact that she looked furious, Hermione also looked like she was neck deep in her thoughts. Without warning, "She's definitely a witch." The two boys gaped at her. "Well isn't it obvious? Think about it: before, the entire male population of Griffindor was falling all over her, and I thought that she may have been using a love potion of some sort. Today, (along with all the boys in this school turning to get a good look at her) she knew all the answers for Potions. If she's a muggle, there's no way on earth that she could have memorized half of the text. She has to be a witch, she has to be!" Ron and Harry looked at each other, then at Hermione, and then back at each other again. "Or," Ron said rather simply, "she could just be really hot." Hermione looked at Ron with disbelief. "Face it, Hermione," he continued, "you're just jealous because she's getting all the guys and you have no one, so you're automatically thinking she's some powerful witch bent on winning us over and then killing us all." At this, Hermione just looked at Ron with devastation and fury for a moment or two. Then she quickly gathered her books and bolted from the Great Hall towards the common room. Ron saw the Look Harry was giving him. "What?"  
  
-=-=-=-=- 


	7. Hermione's Thoughts

As Julia was leaving for Divination, she bumped into someone heading toward the dormitories. "Hermione, are you okay?"  
  
She was about to ignore her, but Hermione had another idea. She spun around and looked Julia in the eye. "How I'm doing should be of no concern to you," she shot. "I know you're up to something, Julia Andrews, and I'm going to find out." With that, she started to storm off.  
  
"Hermione, I'm sorry about what Ron said. It's not true, you know. And anyone can tell you that."  
  
Hermione felt mocked. She whipped around once more. "How are you to know what Ron said? You were nowhere in earshot when we were talking. And even if you were, there was nothing that was stated that's you can say is true or not in your defense."  
  
Julia seemed unmoved. "You still don't believe me, do you. I was referring to your honor, not mine. Think about it for a bit. I'm sure it'll come to you soon enough. You're clever like that."  
  
At this last statement, Julia headed off for class, leaving Hermione to wonder about what Julia said. As she sat on her bed, she thought of what Ron had said, then what Julia had said. ". . .she could just be really hot." She had to admit, Julia was pretty. But a love potion most likely made you physically beautiful. And Julia said she was comforting Hermione's confidence, not her own. ". . .you're thinking she's some powerful witch bent on winning us over and then killing us all." It was true, too. She did think that Julia was a powerful witch. And she was beginning to wonder if she was in the service of Voldemort himself. She seemed to get along with Snape surprisingly well, for a Griffindor. But Harry had said that Snape was a former agent of the Dark Lord who eventually became a spy for those who opposed him. That didn't make sense at all. Hermione started to rack her brain for a clue as to what Julia had said. As she thought, she recoiled at how everyone seemed to follow her around like a mother duck with such admiration. Hermione knew she was a better witch. She had to be. Suddenly, she remembered one other thing that Ron had said: ". . .you're just jealous because she's getting all the guys and you have no one . . ." His last words rang in her ears like a horrible gong. ". . .you have no one . . ." At this reminiscence, Hermione began to cry. Despite the fact that they were always arguing, Hermione liked Ron in a way much different than she liked Harry. She wasn't sure as how she could explain it, but she tried not to let it bother her too much - she would never tell anyone anyway.  
  
As she sat on her bed crying silently, she abruptly remembered what Julia said: "It's not true, you know. And anyone can tell you that." Then came the dawn. Even if that wasn't what Julia meant (after all, she wasn't there - how would she know?), it was a comforting thought. But if it was. . .then what did she mean anyone could tell her that? Hermione consulted her watch: she had Defense Against the Dark Arts in seven minutes. Hermione gathered her things and forced the last hour out of her mind for now - it was irrelevant to finding out who this Julia Andrews girl really was.  
  
-=-=-=-=- 


	8. Apologies and Flower Pots

Julia held onto the ladder leading up to the Divination classroom for support as she gasped for breath. Her failed attempt at gaining Hermione's trust had cost her 10 minutes, and it was a long way from the common room to her class. She had run all the way. As she headed up the stairs, she dreaded listening to Professor Trelawney 'prophesize' about the future. She groaned as she heard the misty voice on her way up the creaky ladder: ". . .I believe that Miss Andrews will be joining our number right," Julia heaved her way up into the classroom and collapsed on to a pouf next to Harry. ". . .now," finished the Professor with a mildly self-satisfied smile on her face.  
  
Julia flinched at the squeals of Lavender and Pavarti. "Ooh, Professor, how did you know that!?"  
  
"The ladder was creaking as I climbed it," Julia answered matter-of- factly. "Anyone within 20 feet of me could have heard it." The two girls looked at each other in total surprise, then at Trelawney with disbelief. "Oh don't worry yourselves too much about that," Julia continued. "She'll win your hearts back over today when we do tarot cards. Or," she turned to the professor, "are we studying something else?"  
  
The professor looked peeved. This new girl was a little too sharp for her Divination class. "No," she replied shortly. She realized she was getting out of character. She tried again. "No, my dear, we are indeed studying the amazing power of the tarot."  
  
Ron looked at Harry with the utmost surprise. "Ya think they'd get along, wouldn't they? They're both psychic," he pointed out as the professor was looking daggers at Julia.  
  
"Well, there's one difference between the two," Harry replied. "I think Julia actually is psychic." Seamus Finnigan and Neville Longbottom overheard him and cracked up.  
  
-=-=-=-=-  
  
"Harry, you were so right about Trelawney - she's a fraud." Hermione had walked up behind the three unnoticed. "Honestly, all of those so-called 'foresights' she made could be easily explained. The ladder, Lavender tripping, Neville's tarot cards catching fire. . .anyone could have predicted that crap." She suddenly turned to Ron. "I want you to apologize to Hermione," she whispered firmly. Ron looked at her like she was suddenly speaking Chinese. "You know what I'm talking about," she said in reply to his expression. To jostle his memory, she muttered, "Lunch."  
  
Ron suddenly looked like he just realized that he had an eight-page Potions paper due in five minutes. "DAMMIT." Everyone in the hall stopped what they were doing and looked at Ron. His voice had cracked for the first time. "Oh. . .fuck," he muttered as everyone started to laugh hysterically as they gradually went back to what they were doing. He instantly turned to Harry. "Were any Slytherins around?"  
  
"No," Harry replied. "But they're gonna find out soon enough. That lasts for a while. Try not to strain your voice to much and it's less likely. There's probably a spell for it, too. Hermione can probably find one," he included, completely unaware of the fact that Hermione was right behind them.  
  
Julia jabbed Ron in the side. "Turn AROUND," she hissed.  
  
Without thinking, he did, almost smacking into Hermione. "Hermione," he started. The girl standing in front of him suddenly seemed different to him. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but whatever it was, it was making him really wish he hadn't said what he had said earlier. "I, I'm really sorry about what I said earlier; I didn't mean it - I mean, you don't have no one, you've got everyone in Griffindor, and Harry, and - " he stopped short. After catching his breath, he added, "and me." He paused to catch Hermione's reaction.  
  
"Harry, we better get over to Configuration," Julia quickly said as she nudged Harry towards the Configuration classroom.  
  
"Uh, yeah. . .see you guys in class," he called to Ron and Hermione, who were apparently deaf to the world around them. When they sat down in the classroom, he turned to Julia. "How'd you pull that off?"  
  
Julia looked confused. "I didn't do anything - he just happened to reach adulthood at a really good time, save the uncontrolled voice-cracking."  
  
"Yeah, he's kinda screwed, isn't he," he responded. "Y'think a wizard may have come up with a spell or something to take care of that?"  
  
"Harry, let's not forget I'm a muggle. We can go to the library later and look for something." At that, Professor McGongall along with several students trotted into the classroom. "Harry?" Julia suddenly asked with a bit of alarm to her voice. Harry looked up at her, curious as to what was wrong. "Is Transfiguration hard for you?" She had just realized that this would be her first class of the day that would involve the use of a wand. Regardless of the fact that a wand had found her, she was still nervous as to whether or not she would be able to use it. She was a muggle, after all.  
  
"Well, it's not as hard as Potions, but I certainly wouldn't call it an easy course," he said in the most comforting way he could. He saw that this didn't help much, but class was starting, so he couldn't say much more. Looking around he murmured "Where're Ron and Hermione?" Julia pointed at the door where the two students walked in quickly and sat down with Harry and Julia. The look on both Ron and Hermione's face made it more than clear that the two were on friendly terms again.  
  
"Good afternoon, class. Today we will be transfiguring inanimate objects into animals," the professor started. Julia's teethe were chattering. She would much rather be learning how to turn a match into a needle with the first years. At least then she wouldn't feel so stupid if she messed up. "We will be starting out simply," she continued, "by turning these flower pots into rabbits. The closer in relation the two are, the easier it is to transfigure them." Julia could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she got a pot. "In order to perform the spell, you must do a sharp flick of the wrist while calling 'Vixi a rabbit,' like so." She did a subtle yet sharp flick of the wrist over her pot. "Vixi a rabbit!" There was a small pop, and in place of the red flowering pot, a black and white rabbit stood staring at the students in the classroom. "You may begin."  
  
The four students all called out "Vixi a rabbit!" at the same time, but only Hermione had gotten it correctly. Sitting in front of her was a floppy-eared rabbit. As she sat there with a proud grin on her face, Julia, Harry, and Ron tried again. Ron's pot had obtained brown and white patches, and Harry's had managed to grow ears and a fluffy tail. Unfortunately, Julia's pot remained unchanged. She sighed with a noticeable amount of exasperation.  
  
As she continually tried to transfigure her pot without success, Hermione glanced at her. She couldn't help but sympathize with the girl. After all, she had tried to comfort her earlier. . ."Julia, stop for a second. You're going to smack someone." Julia stopped thrashing her wand about and blinked. She could have sworn that Hermione had just voluntarily addressed her. "Here, try it again a little more slowly. You're running the words together and they're too slurred to be understood."  
  
Julia was desperate. She was normally too proud to ask for help, but she gladly welcomed it this time. First of all, Hermione was giving it voluntarily, AND she was an extremely intelligent witch. Secondly, Julia wanted to remind everyone that she was a muggle as little as possible, and therefore wanted to do relatively well in her wizarding classes. She took a deep breath. "Vixi a rabbit!" Instead of a pop, there was a slight fizzling noise as her pot turned a little grayer and grew whiskers in the process. "YES! It changed!" Hermione was surprised at how delirious with joy Julia was at the minuscule progress she had made.  
  
"Maybe she is a muggle," Hermione thought to herself. "Okay. . .better, but don't flick your wrist back the other way so much. It's nearly recoiling from the pot."  
  
Julia chuckled. "Alright. . .let's try this one more time. . .vixi a rabbit!" At last, a grey rabbit was sitting in front of her. Julia's jaw dropped. "I-I did it. I transfigured a pot into a rabbit! Woohoo!" At this point, everyone in the room was staring at Julia, who was overreacting just a tad. She turned to Hermione. "Thank you sosososososo much, Hermione. I was kinda screwed there. If it wasn't for you, I'd probably still have a pot sitting there." Hermione couldn't help but blush at the compliment. She smiled and nodded in reply.  
  
"Well, Miss Andrews, it looks like you've managed to transfigure your flowering pot quite nicely, with help from Miss Granger," Professor McGongall commented.  
  
At that moment, her rabbit sneezed soil all over the table. "Uh, Professor? Exactly how many points do you take off for a dirty nose?"  
  
-=-=-=-=- 


	9. Divination Homework

Herbology was much easier for Julia than Transfiguration. She didn't exactly have a green thumb, but at least she didn't need to use a wand. As she stayed behind after class to finish re-potting her singing chondike (its song is able to cure paralysis), Harry, Ron, and Hermione headed back to the common room. "Hey, Hermione, why the sudden change in heart? This morning you seemed about ready to turn Julia over to the Dementors. Then Transfiguration comes around, you helped her out and even managed to smile at her," Harry inquired.  
  
"Yeah, really Hermione, what happened?"  
  
She blushed, then quickly recovered. "Oh, believe me, I still think she's up to something," she swiftly replied. "It's just that. . ." she tried to think of a reason why she had actually helped Julia in the first place. She refused to believe that Julia knew what Ron said earlier, and even if she did, she couldn't tell Harry or Ron that. "Well, I just couldn't let her fail the class - that would be cruel." They were at the common room now.  
  
"Chocolate frog," Harry told the portrait of the fat lady, which swung open easily. "Gee, Hermione, I seem to remember you saying that she was a powerful witch. . .you'd think if she was a powerful witch that she would at least be able to turn a flowering pot into a rabbit, wouldn't you?"  
  
"Everyone has a weakness - hers could be Transfiguration," she retorted.  
  
"So you were helping an evil powerful witch?" Ron questioned somewhat confusedly.  
  
"NO! It's just that - ugh!" Hermione stormed up the spiral staircase leading to the girls' dormitories.  
  
Harry and Ron looked at each other. "PMS," the two moaned together.  
  
Harry glanced at his watch. "Bloody hell! Julia and I were going to the Library after class! I hope she isn't as irritable as Hermione is today!" At that, Harry flew out through the portrait hole towards the greenhouse where Herbology was less than ten minutes ago "I hope that chondike was a real pain to pot," he thought to himself. He sighed with relief as he saw Julia just leaving the greenhouse.  
  
"Hey, sorry I took so long; that chondike was being a real bitch to pot."  
  
"That's perfectly fine," Harry replied. "I don't mind waiting," he added, turning slightly red. "I still shouldn't keep you waiting like that," she said more to herself than Harry. "To the Library? I don't think we should spend more than 20 minutes there; Trelawney gave us a shitload of homework."  
  
When the two students got to the Library, they immediately started going through Potions books and Spell books for anything that could reduce or eliminate voice-cracking. After about 15 minutes, Harry grinned. "Found it. The Velvet Potion."  
  
Julia looked over Harry's shoulder. "But Harry, look at the ingredients; we don't have half of those, and the only place we could get them is - "  
  
"In Snape's lab," He finished with a smirk.  
  
"Harry, you're not. . ."  
  
"Ron, Hermione and I've done it before; I have an invisibility cloak."  
  
"It's too risky. You guys are well-known in the school; I'm just the Durmstang transfer student. If I get in trouble, most of the teachers are looking for the first chance to expel me, I know it. Here, here's a spell for it in 'Handy Spells and Tricks for the Young Wizard and Witch.' All we need is a wand. You could do it tonight, and we wouldn't have to wait or anything." Harry was disappointed that Julia didn't want to raid Snape's lab with him, but he didn't want her to get expelled, either.  
  
When the two got to the common room, they saw Ron had already started the Divination homework. "Where were you guys? I've been trying to deal with this codswallop for 20 minutes already!" Ron's voice cracked at the last part of his sentence, causing everyone in the common room to crack up. Harry and Julia looked at each other. Unfortunately, the spell required the subject to be asleep and unaware of the spell-caster's intent in order for it to work. "Bloody hell, I can't believe this is happening to me now; why couldn't it happen over the summer, or during Christmas vacation, or - "  
  
"Ron," Harry quickly interrupted. "Complaining about it doesn't help. Let's get this Divination finished before 11:00 for once."  
  
"11:00?? I have Transfiguration extra help with Professor McGongall at 9:00. . .I need to speed this along," Julia somewhat urgently thought to herself. "What was the homework again?"  
  
"We need to predict our futures for the next week by looking at the tarot cards," Ron moaned. "I don't even know if I'm holding these stupid things right-side up; they all look the same to me."  
  
Julia got an idea. "Y'know what? Screw this," she grinned as she shoved the tarot cards off the table. Ron, Harry, and even Hermione looked up at Julia with some surprise. "Let's move into the corner," she said quietly. "I don't want everyone badgering me about this later." The three of them moved their chairs toward a corner. "I'm not going to guess some fake future for that fraud," she whispered. "Not like she can tell any way." Ron and Harry still didn't seem to be catching on. "Let's tell her what's really going to happen this month." Julia's grin only got wider when she saw the mental light bulbs go on above Ron and Harry's head. "Now remember: not a word of this to ANYONE." Julia closed her eyes and seemed to go into deep concentration. "Harry, there is going to be some controversy as to who is going to be the new Quidditch captain and seeker this week. . ."  
  
"Blimey, I forgot about that!" Ron exclaimed. "Wood's gone!"  
  
"Quiet, Ron. We may miss something."  
  
"Ron, you are going to lose blood for not keeping your temper. . ."  
  
"WHAT!?" Ron's voice cracked again. "I'm gonna get whomped and all Harry has to worry about is being Quidditch captain!?"  
  
"Uh, Ron? I don't think she can hear us right now." He was right. Julia hadn't flinched. She had just finished something about welcome news. "Great, we missed part of it."  
  
"Chances are it was for you - she said good news," Ron snorted.  
  
Eventually, the three had filled their calendars with future events, mostly simple things ("You need to live your own lives; I can't lay them out for you," was Julia's reasoning), with both good and bad events for everyone, including Harry breaking his wrist due to a Quidditch match. When everyone else had headed upstairs to their rooms, Julia headed out of the common room toward Professor McGongall's classroom.  
  
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Okay, folks..this is probably gonna be the last chapter until March, seeing as I go back to school tomorrow and play rehearsals are gonna keep me at school until late. I'll see if I can squeeze a chapter or two in on weekends, but I'm not promising anything. Thanks again to my supporters! If you like this, you will quite possibly like my original story, which is currently untitled. If you read it and get any ideas for a title, I will most definitely consider using it. The best idea will be the official one! 


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